Group effort

Middle school students create large painting of school mascot

Red Lick Middle School students worked together to create a large painting of the school's mascot. (Submitted photo)
Red Lick Middle School students worked together to create a large painting of the school's mascot. (Submitted photo)

Red Lick Middle School Art students' Mustang Mascot painting was unveiled to a group of students, families, and staff on Thursday during the district's open house.

The acrylic painting is on heavy-duty canvas stretched over a frame built by Principal Jason Dempsey and measures 65.5" wide by 84" tall.

Art students helped select a copyright-free image for reference. Then the outlines of contours and areas of value were carefully drawn on the canvas by two seventh-grade students.

Next, seventh and eighth-grade art students applied a red-brown acrylic wash to block out the horse and chose colors that were painted in for a foreground and a background. Paint smudges were added with wadded paper towels to create the illusion of dirt stirred up by the horse's hooves.

Teacher Julie Middlebrooks then applied blue-black acrylic for the outline and shadowed areas of the horse. Students both observed and participated as the work evolved daily.

On Feb. 13, each art student in fifth through eighth grades who were present that day applied all the colorful strokes making up the body, mane and tail of the horse, building layers of color, beginning with reds and oranges, then yellows and progressing to pinks, purples, and turquoise. The painting was completed by the end of the day. Any student absent that day was able to work on the painting upon returning to school.

It will remain on display in the middle school entry area.

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